[DOE LETTERHEAD]

April 2, 1999

The Honorable John T. Conway
Chairman
Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board
Suite 700
625 Indiana Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20004

Dear Mr. Chairman:

The Department of Energy has addressed the concerns raised by Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Recommendation 93-6 on the need to maintain access to nuclear weapons expertise in the defense nuclear complex.

The approach of the Department for addressing the concerns raised by the Board with regard to knowledge preservation started with the July 5, 1994, implementation plan. The implementation plan was revised to incorporate changes in the nuclear weapons complex and was reissued on February 13, 1996.

On December 20, 1996, the Department reported that all commitments in the original and revised implementation plans and all of the agreed-upon deliverables were provided and requested closure of the recommendation. The Board's response of March 12, 1997, acknowledged that all of the agreed-upon deliverables had been provided. However, the recommendation was not closed because the recommendation's intent had not been fully accomplished.

In the Board's letter of April 15, 1998, five questions were posed regarding assessment and programmatic management actions to verify the commitment of the Department to accomplish the intent of Recommendation 93-6. On February 10, 1999, Mr. Roger Lewis, the senior line manager responsible for information management in Defense Programs, briefed the Board on the Defense Programs actions to address the Board's remaining issues and how the recommendation's intent is being accomplished. Mr. Lewis committed to maintaining a continuing dialog with the Board on knowledge preservation issues. Accordingly, the Department proposes closure of the Board's recommendation.

We appreciate the assistance and cooperation of the Board's staff in helping the Department in maintaining access to nuclear weapons expertise. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Victor H. Reis, Assistant Secretary for Defense Programs, at (202) 586-2177.

Yours sincerely,

Bill Richardson